Spread Rumour or Gossip and Go To Jail

Running your mouth and spreading rumours or gossip in Bayelsa State has now become an offense that could attract a jail term.

The Bayelsa State Governor, Seriake Dickson disclosed that the state government will soon sponsor a bill seeking to make malicious rumour mongering and misinformation of the public a punishable offence to the state House of Assembly.

Dickson observed that the recent spate of rumour mongering in the state was being sponsored by propagandists, who do not mean well for the state and warned that anyone found wanting by the proposed legislation would be punished to serve  as a deterrent to others.

“Going forward, we hope to sponsor a legislation that will provide punishment for false dissemination of information and propaganda, either against the reputation of private individuals or about government or its officials. Of course, we are all aware that the existing laws provide for offences such as criminal defamation of character and so on. But we are going to come up with a legislation to punish ‘dem say, dem say’ people.”

According to him, “people who do so are those who have the opportunity to hear  from the horse’s mouth but choose to make insinuations that contradict  government’s good intentions and policies.”